Story Time With Daddy
by rainediamond
Summary: Percy tries to wrestle little Andromeda Chase-Jackson to bed, but when he asks what kind of story she wants to hear, he didn't think she'd ask about her mother. Sad Percabeth one-shot.


"Daddy," Percy's three-year-old whined, "tell me a story!"

The demigod gave his daughter a wry grin as she puffed up her cherry cheeks at him.

"Alright then, little monster. Let's brush your teeth and get on your jammies first, okay?"

Andy tossed her black curls over her shoulder, pouting, but trudging to the little bathroom of the apartment.

Once there, Percy scooped her up so she was sitting on the counter before he pulled out her toothbrush and her bubblegum flavored, princess-decorated toothpaste.

After a moment of struggling to make sure the toddler stayed balanced while he readied the toothbrush, the former hero of Olympus presented the blue toothbrush to the little girl.

She shook her head as he brought the toothbrush closer. "Daddy, I don't wanna. It tastes icky!"

Percy sighed. "Andromeda Nicole Chase-Jackson, you have to brush your teeth right now, or else no story time tonight or tomorrow," he warned.

Reluctantly, she opened her mouth and allowed him to brush her teeth. After rinsing, Percy scooped her up and let her sit on his hip as he walked back to her room.

As soon as he put her down, she dove for the bed, and Percy just groaned as he dug through the old chestnut dresser for her Little Mermaid pajamas.

After a few minutes of wrestling the tiny legacy of Poseidon, she was finally wearing something other than her favorite ninja costume.

Once he had her tucked under the blankets, Percy sat on the edge of the little bed, careful not to sit on any of the plush owls and sea life that covered the bed like leaves in autumn.

"So, little princess, what type of story would you like to hear tonight?"

Andy stopped squirming for a minute and stared right at him with those startling silver eyes. "Daddy, will you tell me about Mommy?"

Percy felt his heart stop as he fought back tears. "Why do you want to know about Mommy, Sweetie?"

Andy wrung her hands the way Annabeth used to, her tiny frame holding an unusual amount of fear, but also anticipation. "Well, in school, Tommy and Kaiya, and everybody else was talking about their mommies today, but I can't remember Mommy at all. Am I a bad girl for not remembering her? Why can't I remember Mommy?"

Percy turned away for a minute so Andy wouldn't see him cry. "No, honey. You're not a bad girl. It's not your fault you can't remember her." He took a deep breath to calm himself, wiping his eyes before he could face his daughter again. "Mommy isn't with us anymore. She's somewhere far away, and we can't see her, but she's still watching out for us. She had to go away not long after she met you."

"But why, Daddy? Did she not like me?"

"No, no! Nothing like that. She didn't want to leave you, she loved you so, so much. But she had to leave, and she didn't want to. She would have wanted to stay here with you, to watch you grow and learn. She loved you so much, Andy. Never doubt that Mommy loved you with all her heart."

Percy turned away again, trying to hold in the sob in his throat. Andy crawled out from under the covers, climbing onto his lap. "It's okay, Daddy. You don't have to cry. Mommy loved you too. And I love you, Daddy. I won't leave you, so it's okay."

Percy nodded, hugging Andy closer as he thought about Annabeth. He knew that she wouldn't want him crying in front of their daughter. She had asked him to take care of her, and he did. But sometimes he really thought it was Andy who took care of him.

"You're doing just fine, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth whispered from her place in the corner. She knew she could not be seen nor heard, and it hurt so much that she couldn't just reach out and touch them anymore. It hurt that her fingers would pass right through Percy's. It hurt that he could not sense her, couldn't feel her right there, and it pained her to watch her daughter grow up without her.

Sally did as much as she could, but Annabeth wanted to be there herself, she wanted to take back her words to Hera so she could have been there. But she couldn't rewrite history, and she could do nothing more than watch Percy overwork himself and fall apart when Andy could not see, as she cried to herself over a life that would never be.

 **A/N: Sorry for the depressing story, but I got this idea last night as I was going to bed, so I posted it on tumblr and now here.**


End file.
